


Blood like Winter

by LizzzBeth



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Best Friends, CPR, Can be read as Hunk/Lance instead of friendship, Drowning, F/M, Gen, Hurt Lance, Hurt/Comfort, Hypothermia, I really can't give my babies a break can I, Injury, Lance Injury, Langst, M/M, Near Death Experiences, Whump, but this focuses mainly on Hunk and Lance, cuddling to share warmth, cursing, if ya squint, space bros, that's what Hunk and Lance are, worst case scenario
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-16
Updated: 2018-04-17
Packaged: 2019-04-01 01:43:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13987815
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LizzzBeth/pseuds/LizzzBeth
Summary: Unable to use their lions on the planet due to the superstitions of the local population, Hunk and Lance have to float down a riiver in a boat to get to the rebel camp. Only a blizzard and a dislodged glacier stands in their way, which they have to cross with their heavy-as-quiznak boat. When a break in the ice forms and the water current below threatens to swallow them both, Lance and Hunk have to figure a way out of their situation. However, everything takes a turn for the worse requiring Hunk to save the day. Or at least his best friend.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! Wow I haven't posted a story in a while. I really need to get back into writing.  
> I've wanted to write a good whump piece for a while now and so, voila! Let's see how evil Syd can get with this one >:)  
> So, yeah. This isn't beta read so forgive me if you find any mistakes. I'm gonna try and keep the chapters regularly updated and I find that excessive editing discourages me from continuous writing.  
> I hope y'all enjoy this! I'm excited for this story and I can't wait to see where it goes!

Lance panted, sweat dripping down his forehead, making his hair stick to his forehead. The helmet pressing into the wet grimy mess made an itch develop where his finger couldn’t quite reach to scratch it.

His hands gripped the rope over his shoulder as he and Hunk heaved the boat over the ice-frozen river while ice-cold wind and snow beat at them from behind. The cold made his sweating almost torturous but the exertion of dragging a heavy wooden boat over uneven ice blocks made his pores cry. In turn, it made Lance want to cry. His pores were gonna clog up and it’s all because of this stupid frozen river. All this, Lance complained to Hunk in between heaves.

Hunk just nodded and laughed, also sweating profusely after dragging the boat for so long.

“…I mean common! We weren’t supposed to be dragging this thing. Riding it down the river? Yes. Dragging? Nope. This is all bullshit,” Lance wheezed, tugging extra hard to get the boat over a large lump in the ice.

“I know, dude,” Hunk agreed, not as into the conversation and more into concentrating on getting the boat over the ice and back to the flowing part of the river, “You would think that Lotor would’ve known if a blizzard was gonna hike up in the mountains causing a piece of a glacier to dislodge and float down the river. I think he’s punishing me because I put some of that cinnamon-y spice in his food a couple of nights ago. How was I supposed to know he didn’t like cinnamon. Who doesn’t like cinnamon?!”

Lance paused, prompting Hunk to as well.

“Can we take a small break? Because I’m pretty sure my back is about to break,” Lance said, dropping his rope and stretching out his spine.

Hunk rubbed his own back as he radioed in to the castle, “Hey Allura?”

“Yes, Hunk?” The princess responded.

“Yeah, Lance and I were wondering how much farther this ice goes. Also, how much farther to the rebel camp?”

“Not too much farther for the ice,” Coran answered. Lance mouthed to Hunk to ask about their Lions. “And after you get the boat back in the water it’ll only take about half a varga to the rendezvous point.”

“Thanks Coran. Oh and, Lance wants to know why it was so big of a deal to leave our Lions back in the mountains. Personally, I think he’s missing Red’s heat.”

Lotor spoke up and Lance and Hunk deadpanned at each other, “The village these rebels are situated in belongs to a very superstitious people. They don’t trust technology that is too advanced because they attribute heavy technological advancements to the Galra. So much so that even wearing your armor is a risk. If you would have brought the lions, we could not hope to ally ourselves with this planet.”

“Kaythanksbye,” Hunk hurriedly replied before muting his comms. Him and Lance rolled their eyes.

“That dude thinks he’s sooooo… ugh! Like, okay I know he’s right but does he really have to be Mr. Wikipedia every time he speaks?”

Hunk laughed, “I know. He’s like a purple alien version of Siri.”

“The male British version that people choose to be ‘edgy’,” Lance groaned.

They picked their hike back up a couple of dobashes later, the boat slowing them down and making their muscles scream due to its weight. Wind whistled past their helmets, making it so there was never a quiet moment. Snowflakes flew around them, not making visibility bad or anything but making things just that much colder.

After about ten more dobashes, the edge of the glacier was in sight, about a mile out, and Lance breathed a sigh of relief.

Hunk stopped abruptly, yanking Lance back against the sudden full weight of the boat on his rope.

“Dude what the heck?” Lance yelped, wiping a bead of sweat off the tip of his nose before it could freeze.

“I thought I heard something,” Hunk responded, listening closely. Lance joined in too.  
After a couple of seconds, Lance spoke up, “I don’t hear anything. Maybe you just heard my knees screaming over the sound of the wind.”

“Lance, you sound like an old lady,” Hunk grumbled before hoisting his rope over his shoulder and tugging again.

When Lance also tugged, they heard a groan and a pop, causing the two boys to look at each other.

“Hey, it wasn’t me,” Lance shrugged.

Then the ice below their feet shifted, throwing them both slightly off balance. A few feet away, a crack formed in the ice where water intermittently washed up over the surrounding ice. Another groan-pop and a crack formed to Lance’s left, water now lapping at his feet.

“Shit! Shit shit shit shit!” Hunk blanched, turning his comms back on, “Guys, we have an emergency! The ice is breaking!”

“Quiznak!” Coran started, voice warbled by the comms, “Are you close to the river bank?”

“No,” Lance said, “The ice was smoother in the middle.”

“That’s because the ice is thinner there, geniuses!” Pidge scolded them, making Hunk cringe.

“Try and get the boat to the shore. If the ice breaks any more then leave it and get out of there!” Shiro commanded.

“Okay, Shiro,” Lance affirmed and cautiously took a step with Hunk towards the direction of the shore, not tugging on the boat yet. The ice creaked slightly but didn’t crack again until the next step.

“Quiznak, okay uhm. Yeah. This ice can barely hold us, I don’t think this boat is going anywhere,” Lance said lightly, almost too afraid to speak too loudly should the ice crack more. Hunk took another light step, wobbling the ice. Lance reached out and grabbed Hunk’s arm to balance himself.

Shiro spoke up again, “I told you guys to leave it and get out of there!”

“That’s a bit easier said than done,” Hunk shot back, “Every step we take tilts the ice. We’ll be lucky if we don’t tip the whole thing in the next five steps let alone the 10 meters we have till the shore.”

“Lance, Hunk,” Lotor spoke, a pitch higher than his usual calm voice, “Lie down.”

“There’s freezing water coming from the cracks and you want us to lie down _why?!_ ” Lance shrieked.

“Yeah, what the quiznak, dude?” Hunk grumbled, slipping a bit on the ice before correcting his footing.

“Oh shit, guys they’ve never been on ice before,” Pidge spoke up, “Hunk is from Hawaii and Lance is from Cuba. Both are islands on Earth where there _isn’t any ice to get stuck on_.”

“PIDGE, IT ISN’T OUR FAULT,” Lance yelled into his comms over the sound of the wind.

“YOU’RE THE ONES WHO WENT TO THE MIDDLE OF THE ICE,” Pidge yelled back before clearing her throat, “I mean, I know you didn’t know any better BUT STILL.”

“Everyone calm down,” Shiro groaned and Lance could picture Shiro pinching the bridge of his nose, “Lance, Hunk. Drop down on your stomachs and crawl off the glacier. It will help spread out your weight, so it won’t be as easy to break the ice.”

Hunk let out a humph as both he and Lance dropped down to their stomachs as slowly and softly as possible. Cold water seeped onto the ice from the edges of the crack as they shuffled away from the heavy boat, towards the foliage on the bank. 

The jagged, uneven ice below them dug into their knees, hands, elbows and… uh, _other_ areas… making the crawl seem even slower going than dragging the boat. After a sharp piece of ice scraped his hand, Lance got an idea and looked to Hunk, “Y’know, this is my least favorite way to tear up my knees,” he said with a smirk. Hunk and everyone on the other end of the comms groaned but Hunk ended up trying to suppress a smile and Pidge giggled a little over the comms so Lance counted it as a score.

But the atmosphere of the joke disappeared as a sharp crack rang through the ice, echoing under the water as the slab shifted- a sound more ominous than the blizzard whipping around them. The crack ran right around Lance and Hunk, springing up more freezing cold water that made Lance regret having a bellybutton and that made Hunk roll to the side.

Once Hunk’s weight was off his side, the slab became unbalanced, tilting Lance into the water. Hunk realized just in time, grabbing the edge of the ice slab that rose up right next to him while Lance found a grip and hung on for dear life.

“Hunk!”

“Lance!”

“Hunk, don’t let me fall in! I don’t want my last words to be a blowjob joke!”

Allura cut in over the comms, “What’s happening? Is everyone alright?”

Coran spoke too, “Lance’s biomonitor has detected a slight drop in temperature. Did he fall in?”

“Only about halfway, Coran!” Lance called, “Hunk’s keeping my newly formed Titanic door from flipping,” He took a deep breath, “and may I just say, _quiznak it’s cold_.”

“What’s a ‘titanic door’?” Lotor wondered aloud.

“Lance, can you get back on the ice?” Pidge asked.

“Not the piece I’m hanging on to, it’s halfway in the air.”

“Not to mention, _extremely heavy_.” Hunk groaned between gritted teeth.

“If Hunk wasn’t grabbing it, it would flip upside down and trap me under.”

“Can you get on to some other ice?” Pidge asked.

“I can try,” Lance said, picking one of his legs up out of the cold water. He could feel a current underneath the ice that didn't seem like it was too friendly.

The angle was awkward as Lance reached his toes towards the edge of the ice behind him, the strain making his leg cramp. The tip of his foot brushed against the ice. He tried again, hooking on the top before the soft ice broke. He tried again and again but it played out the same way.

“Quiznak,” Lance breathed, letting his leg drop back down.

“What is it?” Hunk asked, out of breath from holding the ice.

“I- I can’t get a good hook on the ice. It keeps breaking.”

“We’ll get Shiro down there in Black. It will only take a few dobashes,” Allura offered.

“No!” Lance shot, “Then we won’t be able to secure an alliance. Lotor said so.”

“Then think around the situation,” Lotor said, “Find another way to solve this.”

Lance paused for a few seconds, debating his options. He could try to lunge over to the ice behind him. But then again, even his foot was too heavy for that ice. He could fall through.

He could try to crawl up to the side of the ice Hunk was holding on to. But the ice had gotten slippery from the water rushing up on it and Lance was barely hanging on to the pits in the ice as it was. Plus, it might unbalance the slab further.

“I-I don’t know. _Quiznak!_ Uh…”

“Screw this!” Pidge yelled, “If you guys won’t let Shiro go down there, I’ll take Green and go myself.”

“Pidge, you do that, and I’ll never forgive you!” Lance yelled back, “I can figure this out. We’re not losing this planet because of me.”

Then an idea struck him. Was it stupid? Yes. Could it get him killed? Definitely. But also, could it work? Yup. And that was good enough for Lance.

“I got it! I’m gonna let go now.”

“WHAT?!” Hunk yelled, almost losing his grip on the ice.

“Yeah, yeah. I’m gonna let go and float down the river,” Lance said matter-of-factly.

“Yeah, you’ll float under the ice and we’ll never see you again!” Hunk sounded angry that Lance even thought of the idea. His voice rose so loudly Lance could hear it clearly over the wind without the comms.

“Don’t worry. I’ll float under the ice and pop up when the ice stops. It’s only about a mile or so. I can activate my full-face visor and breath my suit’s oxygen.”

There was a pause over the comms and Lance kept hanging on, waiting for either a go-ahead or for them to shoot down his idea. The ice started quivering a bit, so Lance looked up to the other side of the slab. He couldn’t see Hunk due to the angle of the ice, but he could see his hand gripping the edge, shaking.

“You know,” Allura pondered, “It’s not the worst idea. But Lance, your temperature will drop significantly.”

“So I’ll get a cold, big deal,” Lance shrugged.

“You’ll be in danger of hypothermia,” Shiro added, “But if Hunk runs along the bank and meets with you at the end of the glacier, he can help warm you up.”

“I’m down for some cuddling,” Hunk spoke up, his voice breathy and tired, “By the way, can we speed this up? My shoulder feels like it’s about to blow out. _Shit_ who knew ice was this heavy?”

“I’m with Hunk. Let’s go ahead and get it over with,” Lance said, activating his full-face visor and shifting himself a bit so he could slide into the water and let the current take him. Hunk felt Lance moving around and allowed himself to relax a bit.

“Hold on, Lance, there are still dangers you need to know about,” Pidge stated.

“Dear Christ,” Hunk groaned loudly, tensing back up.

“Lance, this is a giant piece of a glacier that has broken and slid off the main glacier. This isn’t like a normal frozen river,” Pidge continued.

“Please, take your time elaborating, no rush,” Hunk gritted through his teeth.

“The underside of this ice isn’t going to be completely smooth, it’s going to be uneven and there are going to be sharp jagged points. It’s also a couple of meters thick in places so there are going to be patches of light and dark so it’s going to be difficult to get orientation under the water. There are also going to be sandbanks you might have to swim around and plants that you might get tangled in,” Pidge listed off.

“As long as there aren’t any evil fishes down there, I think I’ll be good,” Lance said.

“One more thing,” Lotor inserted.

“C’MON! I THINK HE’LL BE FINE!” Hunk yelled between gritted teeth.

Lotor ignored him, “Try and slide yourself into the water head first. If you go in feet first, the current will carry you off upside down and disorient you. If that happens you won’t be able to see where you’re going so you won’t be able to maneuver yourself.”

"Rodger that, Siri,” Lance laughed nervously.

“My name is Lotor,” the prince grumbled.

Lance thought about a way to orient himself to get in the water face first. His feet could feel the tug of the current and it was pretty strong. Lotor was right about fearing the current’s power.

The blue paladin made sure his right hand’s grip on the slab was strong before letting go with his left, reaching towards some non-broken ice close to him. He could feel how thin and soft the ice he grabbed was, so he didn’t put all his weight on it. He looked down into the black water below him, nerves getting the best of him. 

He pushed outwards on the stable ice next to him so that it didn’t break and pushed on the slab he was hanging on, hearing Hunk groan in response. Then he took his legs and raised them behind him a bit, not so that they broke the surface of the water but so that his body was parallel to the water’s surface. Lance steeled himself then plunged his head in, letting the inertia of the action raise his feet above the freezing water as his top half submerged, the cold stealing the breath out of his lungs.

Of course, nothing could go 100% smoothly.

When Hunk felt the weight move off the slab, he immediately let go. This allowed the half of the ice that was in the water rise up as the half of the slab that was raised in the air slapped back down to the water. This splashed Hunk with freezing cold water, which was fine. But it also happened too quickly for Lance to get out of the way.

Lance’s upper body was already deep enough that it was missed by the ice. But Lance’s left foot hadn’t yet cleared the surface when the slab slammed up, trapping his foot above the ice. The current caught the rest of Lance’s body and tried to drag him along. This slammed Lance to the underside of the slab.

“Ow! Shit!” Lance cried out as his forehead hit the front of his helmet which hit the bottom of the ice. His ankle was twisted in a way that made it very uncomfortable, not quite enough to break it but enough to make it sprain.

“Crap! Guys, Lance’s foot is stuck!” Hunk called out on the comms.

Lance opened his eyes, looking up at the bottom side of the ice he had slammed into. It would be pretty if it weren’t for the jagged crack that crossed his vision and the ice-cold rivulets of water that landed on his face, stinging his eyes.

“My helmet is cracked! Get me up, get me up!”

“I got you Lance,” Hunk said, crawling around the slab of ice to the side where Lance’s foot poked up. He almost made it there when the ice started groaning underneath him.

“Hunk, don’t you dare move!” Allura called over the comms.

“But Lance-“

“I know,” the princess responded, “But unless you want to risk the mission and your lives by you both getting trapped and getting hypothermia and possibly _dying_ , you will not move any further.”

“Guys, a lot of water is getting in my helmet!” Lance called and Hunk could see his foot moving around in panic, cracking the ice a little around him, which made him think.

“I could break the ice that has Lance’s foot trapped and then get off to the shore and meet him at the end of the ice.”

“Do it! Do it do it do it!” Lance cried, “There’s not a lot of air left in my helmet, I’m gonna have to hold my breath soon. I don’t know how long it’s gonna take me to get to clear water to take a breath!”

“Do it, Hunk!” Pidge called.

Hunk took his fist and beat on the thin soft ice around Lance’s foot, cracks splintering out from the impact of his hand. He beat again and again until finally, the ice shattered, and Lance’s foot disappeared beneath the dark water.

“Got it!” Hunk cheered.

“Good! Now get to the shore- carefully!- and run to the end of the ice. Look for Lance to pop up!” Coran called over the comms.

Hunk crawled away from the hole on the ice until he was sure he was on thicker ice. Then he stood up and bolted for the snow-covered shore.

“Pidge, you were right, it’s dark and _freezing_ down here,” Lance spoke, his voice uneven as the current turned him underwater. He talked around the water in his helmet, “I’m gonna have to hold my breath in a few ticks,” He breathed out, panic somewhere in his voice even as he tried to hide it. He could see patches of light came through the ice making everything take on an eerie blue-black tint, not making the experience any more pleasant. 

“Focus on breathing, Lance,” Lotor said, “Until you have to hold your breath. Then take as deep of a breath as you can and just _hold_ for as long as you can.”

Lance’s breathing became slower and deeper over the comms even though his shivers could be heard from the cold water he tumbled in.

Hunk’s voice broke over the comms, “I got to the shore. I can see the end of the ice just over a mile out. I can run that in seven dobashes,” He said as he started running.

“Lance will pop up in about three. Four at the most,” Shiro said.

“Shit, I don’t know if I can hold my breath that long,” Lance said in between breaths, “My helmet is almost full- Ow!” He called out in pain as his arm hit something, “The quiznaking ice is poking down under here.”

“Watch out! I told you that was there!” Pidge scolded.

“Don’t focus on that, Lance,” Allura’s voice came in, ignoring Pidge, “Just focus on holding your breath, no matter what. Turn off your comms so you don’t hear us. It will help you focus. We will still be able to hear you if something happens.”

“Okay,” Lance took in three deep breaths then one large breath.

Silence.

“He must be holding his breath now. The water must’ve filled his helmet,” Shiro stated.

“Hunk the clock is ticking now!” Coran called out, “His temperature is gradually decreasing. If he manages to hold his breath for the full three to four mintues, the lack of oxygen will make him lose body heat faster. If he can’t hold his breath, you’re going to have to retrieve him from the water and perform CPR.”

“What?!” Hunk yelled, picking up his pace, “Why didn’t you tell Lance all of this?”

“It would’ve just scared him,” Coran responded, “Then he definitely wouldn’t be able to hold his breath. It’s already more than likely that he won’t be able to. Just get there in time and be waiting for him. He’ll be easy enough to spot.”

“Sorry for the Earth-curse,” Hunk breathed, dodging the trees and shrubs growing alongside the river, “but _fuck_.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter took so long guys! I kinda got caught up in a couple of other Voltron projects. I hope y'all enjoy this chapter because I sure as hell enjoyed writing it!

Lance knew he was shivering but he didn’t dare focus on it. The only thing he could afford to focus on was the stale, burning air in his lungs. He couldn’t see shit because of the water in his helmet- and even if there weren’t any water on his eyes he doubted he could see anything anyway. It was dark. Eerie. Foreboding. 

As soon as Hunk freed his foot and Lance took his breath, Lance curled up in a ball. This way he flowed more efficiently with the current. 

He was scared. God, he was scared. His lungs burned terribly, begging for a fresh breath. His limbs were now numb from the cold water. He had lost all orientation under here and didn’t know how much longer he would have to hold his breath… let alone how much longer he could.

Lance panicked as he felt his back bump up against the bottom of the ice as he dragged along, effectively slowing his momentum. Dammit! He immediately uncurled from his ball and kicked off from the underneath of the ice- hoping to increase his speed while doing so. Something tugged around his leg, scaring him half to death before it let loose and he reasoned that it was river fronds. He almost sighed in relief- but stopped his breath from letting out at the last second.

It would use too much of the remaining oxygen in his lungs to curl back up, so he flowed along limp- ready in case he bumped back on the ice ceiling. He focused inwards. His diaphragm was starting to spasm, his involuntary functions trying to supply his body with the missing oxygen. His throat burned from holding in now-hot carbon dioxide. He tried a trick he learned long ago while playing in the Gulf of Mexico. He simulated breathing with him diaphragm and moved the air in his chest in an in and out motion, buying him a few more possibly-crucial seconds.

Opening his eyes stung from the cold water in his helmet, but he had to know- had to see- just how much longer he would have to wait for breath. He was met with a black shadow in front of his face.

Lance slammed into the sandbank hard, the air in his lungs immediately being knocked from his mouth- air bubbles floating up and away from him. He quickly shuffled up and over the sandbank kicking off- willing himself not to breathe in. It burned, itched, ached. He needed air! He looked ahead of him. He saw a brightness in the direction he was moving. He prayed that it was the end of the ice, but it was too far out. Lance’s movements were now lethargic and as his back once again dragged and snagged on the ice above him, he realized he wouldn’t be able to hold his breath any longer. He hoped Hunk would save him, because he couldn’t do it anymore. 

Cold water rushed into Lance’s throat and he immediately regretted his breath. The burning in his diaphragm was replaced with the burning urge to cough. The water he coughed out was quickly replaced with more water. More and more freezing thickness enveloped his insides. His torso twitched and shuddered, trying to expel the foreign substance. Blackness creeped into his vision and he started to feel fuzzy in the parts of his body that weren’t already numb. 

Lance twitched one more time before succumbing to the dark that felt less painful than the cold wet tomb inclosing him.

~~~~~

Hunk panted as he reached the end of the glacier where water flowed and turned into something that more resembled a river. He slowed to a stop and looked out over the water through the white blizzard. No Lance. He scanned the banks to see if Lance had floated to the side, which would have happened if he would have already popped up. No Lance.

Hunk hit the comms button on his helmet.

“Guys,” he panted, “I don’t see Lance anywhere.” Panic surged inside of him. “Guys, what do I do?!”

“Hunk,” Allura’s voice sounded, “Lance hasn’t popped up yet.”

“WHAT?!” He yelled, “Oh my God, I knew I should never have let him go. Oh God oh God oh God-“

Pidge talked next, “Calm down! He’s almost to the end of the glacier. He’ll pop up and the motion of the water will carry him close to the shore. Just wade out and catch him.”

“It’s been six minutes!” Hunk cried, “He’ll have drowned by now.” Hunk’s heart clenched in fear for his friend.

“Use CPR,” Shiro ordered. “The healing pods can fix his sternum, so don’t worry about breaking it because you’ll have to.”

Hunk gulped, staring at the edge of the ice unblinking, scanning the water for any sign of-

“There!” Hunk shouted, immediately running out into the water, “I see him. He just surfaced!”

White and blue armor floated up, but Hunk immediately panicked. Lance was in a deadman’s float, only his back poking up out of the water.

Just as Pidge predicted, Lance started to float closer to shore. Hunk waded out to his waist, ignoring the stinging cold of the water.

He reached Lance’s body and wrapped his strong arms around the torso, lifting Lance’s head out of the water. Water still flooded Lance’s helmet, rivulets of water leaking out. Hunk gasped, shocked at seeing Lance’s pale slack face drowned in his own helmet. Then he snapped out of it and heaved, dragging Lance to the shore.

He set the smaller boy down on the snow, ripping off the helmet- water splashing out and flowing over the ground. Lance’s head lolled to the side. Next, Hunk ripped off Lance’s chest plate, beginning to pump on his diaphragm as soon as he could position his hands. 

The sternum broke under the heels of his hands and little streams of water surged from Lance’s blue lips with each pump of Hunk’s arms. After 10 pumps, Hunk threw off his own helmet. He tilted Lance’s head back and, holding his nose, blew into his mouth. The air was met with resistance as it hit the wall of water in Lance’s trachea. After three breaths, he started the pumping again. ‘Stayin’ Alive’ playing in his head did little to distract Hunk from the feeling of his friend’s ribs popping under his hands. 10 pumps. 3 breaths. 10 pumps. 3 breaths. 

Tears were streaming down Hunk’s face as he looked at Lance’s lax form. He couldn’t lose his best friend. He couldn’t. It couldn’t happen… _It wouldn’t happen._

With a newfound fury on the unfairness of this godforsaken day, and a shout of frustration, Hunk pumped fiercer, breathed deeper, fought for Lance’s life harder.

A jerk and a twitch later, Lance began coughing. Relieved, Hunk flipped Lance on his side as the Red Paladin gasped and gagged, vomiting river water from his lungs.

Hunk sobbed in relief, setting his head down on Lance’s back- taking solace in every cough and intake of breath. Hunk’s forehead pressed into Lance’s shivering, shuddering back as Hunk cried and hugged Lance around his waist.

“Easy,” Hunk said, “I’ve got you. You’re okay. You’re safe. Breathe, Lance. You’re okay. I got you. I got you.”

Lance’s coughs slowed as the water cleared out of his chest, and the Cuban boy took deeper and deeper breaths. Hunk, from where his head connected with Lance’s torso, heard the clicking of Lance’s broken sternum with each breath and knew it must feel horribly painful. But at least Lance was breathing again.

Hunk sat up, slipping his helmet back on as he patted Lance’s back through the occasional cough and gag. Everyone was exploding over the comms.

“Lance’s vitals are back online!”

“Great job Hunk!”

“You saved him!”

“You give that boy a slap for me- he scared me half to death!”

“Hunk, make sure he stays on his side for a while.”

Hunk thanked them and then moved around to Lance’s front. He cradled the pale boy’s face in his hands, lifting it into his lap. Lance stirred, opening his eyes to look up at the Yellow Paladin. 

“W-w-wanna c-cuddle st-t-till?” Lance smiled as he rasped, stuttering with the shivers that wracked his body. 

Hunk hiccupped as new tears leaked down his face, “Don’t you dare do that ever again. You scared us.”

~~~~~

Following the team’s instructions, Hunk carried Lance further into the surrounding forest to find a dry patch of ground. Brown dirt and fallen leaves were visible, untouched by the blizzard’s snow, underneath a tree-like plant about a hundred yards from the river bank. He sat Lance down, propping him up against the tree. The smaller boy shivered violently so Hunk knew he had no time to lose.

He quickly gathered up as much dry brush and as many dry twigs and sticks as he could (not an easy feat in a blizzard) and stacked them in a pile- far enough away from the tree so that he wouldn’t start a wildfire but still close enough to where it was on dry ground and not snow. Then, not having time to create fire the old fashioned way and finding himself short on matches, he activated his bayard, stuck the tip to the dry foliage, and charged it up. He didn’t want to blast his pile away but he wanted to create enough heat from the plasma to start a fire. 

Bingo! A warm flame flickered to life while Hunk added more and more fuel in the way of dead plant-life.

Then Hunk set about removing his and Lance’s armor. They had been best friends for years and had seen each other stripped down to less than underwear before, so neither of them had any reservations about being almost naked in front of each other. Especially when it came down to survival.

Hunk reached for Lance’s armor, he froze. Back on the shore, he was too preoccupied with saving his friend’s life to notice the damaged and battered torso plate, but it must have looked horrible. The under suit looked like claws had raked down Lance’s back, cutting into the flesh along his shoulder blades. It wasn’t deep enough for significant bleeding, but Hunk knew if a paper cut stung under sink water, then these scratches hurt like hell being exposed to the cold. Hunk was careful- minding Lance’s back- as he helped the Red Paladin strip down.

Hunk left their underwear on for basic decency purposes but set the rest of their armor on the other side of the fire to dry. He prayed that the tree next to them would be a good enough blocker to the cold wind because he didn’t have enough time to construct a lean-to. Lance needed warmth _now_. Hunk set his own helmet next to the fire where they would both be laying and turned on the comms, updating the team on their position and condition, leaving the channel on so they would be able to talk without him keeping the uncomfortable helmet on.

He gathered his friend into his arms, wrapping around him like a giant koala, and laid them down facing the campfire. Lance seemed to melt into the embrace, snuggling into Hunk’s own shivering chest. Hunk’s waist and legs were freezing from where he waded into the water, so he could only imagine how cold Lance felt.

It wasn’t the most comfortable of positions to be in- half naked, laying on the forest floor during a snowstorm. Twigs and rocks dug into Hunk’s side and his back, which was facing away from the fire, took the brunt of the icy wind. If they were in any other sort of weather, their proximity to the blaze would have been uncomfortably hot, and even now Hunk’s eyeballs almost stung from the warmth.

Lance’s shivering slowly stopped as he buried his hands into Hunk’s warm armpits and Hunk entwined their legs. Hunk moved his hands and arms up and down Lance’s back to rub some more heat into the boy.

When Lance went slack, Hunk almost had a heart attack, jerking his teammate at once.

“Hey. Don’t you dare. Stay awake. You’re still in danger of hypothermia,” Hunk scolded.

Lance, however, found even more comfort in the rumble of Hunk’s voice through the chest he currently used as a pillow.

“But ‘m tir’d,” Lance slurred, drunk on the newfound warmth now feeding back into his body. “M’ chest hurts… back hurts… sleepy…”

Hunk sighed, “I know, buddy. But we have to get you thoroughly warmed up- then you can sleep. Stay awake for thirty more minutes, yeah?”

Lance nodded drowsily into Hunk’s chest, tucking his head up under Hunk’s chin. Sleep seemed too tempting, though it seemed, because Lance once again found himself nodding off.

Hunk jolted him again, “Okay, let’s talk.”

Lance groaned, “’Bout what?”

“I don’t know. Anything to keep you awake.”

Lance didn’t seem to have any ideas, so Hunk wracked his brain. Then something struck him that made his chest constrict.

“Lance… Why didn’t you let Pidge come down here with her lion? Or Shiro?”

Lance shivered instead of answering for a few seconds, and then, “B-because. Like Lotor said… we would’ve los’ the planet if they saw our tech…”

The Yellow Paladin frowned and readjusted them so that he was essentially spooning Lance- Lance’s back was quite warm by now and so his front needed warming.

“Dude… there are thousands of other planets. We could have found another ally,” Hunk said.

Lance shook his head, “But then… I would have been the reason we lost here…”

Hunk gripped his best friend tighter against his chest, hugging him now more than simply holding him, “You’re more important than some stupid alliance. You know that, right Lance?”

Lance was silent again. Hunk prodded, “ _Right_ , Lance? Please tell me you know that.”

Lance sniffled, and Hunk realized he was crying.

“Thank you, Hunk,” Lance said, grabbing at the big arms wrapped around his chest in a sort of hug. “Thank you for saving me.”

Hunk smiled, “You’re welcome. But, next time, let us save you before you almost die- not after. We’re already fighting a war- this bullshit is taking extra years off my life.”

Lance nodded.

After that, they talked about some more random things. Lance swore off blowjob jokes- “They’re cursed! I said one and then I fell through!”- Hunk promised to make Lance his favorite meal once they were back on the ship- “I found something that’s kinda like wonton broth and I can make the wontons no problem- I’ll just have to improvise the meat and-“

An hour later, they had cycled through conversation topics and cuddling positions for maximum warmth. Now they were both well on their way to normal body temperature and Lance’s eyes drooped heavily- he had been through so much in the past hour, Hunk didn’t blame him. He let the smaller paladin fall asleep and hugged him closer once he was unconscious. He would make sure that, from now on, Lance knew his worth. He was Hunk’s best friend and dammit if Hunk wasn’t going to show him that.

~~~~~

Meanwhile, back on the castleship, the rest of the team heard everything. The comms that had been left open on Hunk’s helmet and that had been forgotten by the very same person had let them listen in on the whole thing.

They kinda felt like shit, to be honest.

Once the two friends’ conversation faded, replaced by Lance’s snores and Hunk’s heavy breathing, Allura muted the comms and addressed the other four on how to better their team dynamic. She wouldn’t stand for her paladins to feel like such a small alliance was worth more than their lives. Big battles- yes they were all game for that. Sacrifice was their job and they shouldn’t take that lightly. On the small stuff, though? Their lives weren’t worth that. 

At the end of her speech, they all decided (minus an indifferent Lotor) that, once their stranded paladins were back on the ship, they would make sure Lance knew how fucking important he just was.

They just had to get them back home, first.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's going to be a third chapter, so keep your eyes open for it!


End file.
